Decoding Neanderthals

Over 60,000 years ago, the first modern humans left their African homeland and entered Europe, then a bleak and inhospitable continent in the grip of the Ice Age. But when they arrived, they were not alone: the stocky, powerfully built Neanderthals had already been living there for hundreds of thousands of years. So what happened when the first modern humans encountered the Neanderthals? Did they make love or war?

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This is a documentary about Neanderthals, originally broadcast by PBS (Public Broadcasting Service) on January 9, 2013.
In 2010, a team led by geneticist Svante Paabo announced stunning news.
Not only had they reconstructed much of the Neanderthal genome but they also found that Neanderthals contributed to the DNA of anatomically modern humans, including most non-Africans as well as a few African populations, through interbreeding, likely between 50,000 to 60,000 years ago.
This is a gripping, fascinating and eye-opening documentary.

Svaante Paabo recently wrote a book, "Neanderthal Man: In search of lost genomes" and this DVD includes a short synopsis of the book, which describes in quite a bit of detail how difficult it was to uncover the Neanderthal nuclear DNA sequence and what it means.
This DVD shows research in both genetics and archaeology that Dr. Paabo's research has shed light on.

As is usually the case with NOVA documentaries, this one does not disappoint. The program looks at our genetic cousins, the Neanderthals, exploring their genetics, new ideas on their intelligence, ingenuity, and even culture. These ideas contrast sharply with older concepts of the Neanderthal, but seem to increasingly fit the evidence. The likely fate of the species, absorbed into the mainstream human species, is also touched up on here, with commentary from numerous experts in the field.